Song of the Day: The Slew – It’s All Over

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs and recordings from independent artists our DJ’s think you should hear. Each and every Friday we deliver songs by local artists. Today’s selection, featured on the Morning Show with John Richards, is “It’s All Over” by The Slew from the 2009 album 100% on Ninja Tune.

A scratched documentary soundtrack turned into something epic when Kid Koala and Dynomite D, best known for his collaboration with the Beastie Boys, got together. Internet rumors suggest said documentary was about an obscure Seattle pysch band of the same name, and although the film never came to be, what came out of the sessions was inspiring for Koala, aka Eric San and Dynomite D, Seattle’s Dylan Frombach. They took it and ran — straight into an album, calling it 100%, and themselves, The Slew.

“It’s All Over” is thick with funk rhythms and old-school scratching. Along with the twangy guitar reverberation, are bluesy samples which combined transport you to multiple eras and genres at once: funk, blues, rock, grunge, and naturally, hip hop. The heavy beats make up a weighty track, which was mixed by Mario Caldato Jr., also of Beastie Boys fame. You can’t get the dramatic and repetitive message out of your head when its paired with such moveable bass lines, staccato beats and driving, gritty guitar lines.

Despite the negative connotations that multiple attempts at the “rock-meets-hip-hop” genre have elicited in the past, The Slew create a union between two (at last) consenting genres. The mixing, sampling, and weighty beats tip the scales toward turntablism, but at the same time meld fuzzy distorted guitars, and make The Slew something rock-out worthy for everyone.

This last fall, The Slew toured in select cities in the U.S. and Canada. The chance to see their epic show backed by Chris Ross and Myles Heskett of Wolfmother, as part of their touring band, is long past (because it was so far, considered a chance in a lifetime tour). Check for updates, exclusive content, and more videos via their myspace or Facebook pages. And, for those who missed out on the one-off tour, here’s a video of “It’s All Over” to help you live vicariously through the powers of the internet, and YouTube: